White Flag
by Mord-Sith Rahl
Summary: Songfic to White Flag by Dido. Might add sequel.


Summary: Songfic type thingy to Dido's "White Flag".

Set ten years later. Idea came to me while listening to Dido and so I made up crap to get Sarah back to the Underground that doesn't involve Jareth (hence the rapidness). Might add sequel if I like it enough and you ask nicely. Actually...it's not really much of a songfic...oh well.

Disclaimer: I no own Labyrinth or Dido/White Flag.

* * *

Ten years.

Ten years of secrets, ten years of lies, ten years of deceit.

Sarah Williams was finally returning home. Not to the home that was the little two-story house she grew up in, no, but the home that called to her in her sleep. The home that called to her when she was awake. The home that whispered sweet nothings in her ear.

For the last few years Sarah had been studying at college for her Child Psychology degrees and before that she had taken other classes in Shakespeare, History, and anything else she thought she might need…like politics. Her years in college, especially during the Child Psychology and Politics, were very…interesting. But, then again, they would be interesting for anybody had they the magic of an ancient entity.

Sarah stood in front of her childhood house with her few bags in her hands and remembered that day, or rather night…okay, the wee hours of the morning perfectly as if it were yesterday. She had just dropped onto her bed from exhaustion and closed her eyes the memory of bidding her friends farewell after their little party and a few rounds of scrabble (Sarah couldn't help but continue to make words like 'crystal', 'king', 'smirk', 'mismatched', and the like throughout the game) still fresh in her mind. She knew she should have taken a shower but after running for thirteen hours one gets kinda tired, you know? Well, that was exactly when that damn voice decided to bring her back to reality…if one could call something of magic that.

_Sarah_, it had whispered in her head. It was both female and male, both sweet and menacing. It was everything and nothing. Damn contradictions. _Sarah_.

At first she had thought it was the Goblin King back for revenge (!) but she soon realized it could not of been him (drat…I mean…goodie). And as her eyes flew open she saw that white light was shining into her room…from the mirror. So she got up and crept slowly in front of the vanity…and saw the source of the light. The light created the shape of a figure but added no definition to whether it was male or female or to even what type of creature it was. The light also was in place instead of her own reflection. Each move she took the light copied as if it were Sarah's self reflected onto the mirror.

_Hello Sarah._

"Um, hello…thing," she replied lamely. "Just who exactly are you?" she asked her brain not completely functioning in its exhausted state.

_Who? Hmm. We do not know 'who' we are. Neither are we a what, though. We are simply us._

"Okay, and who is 'us'?" Sarah had quirked her brow. A shift of light and shadow mimicked.

_We are…the Labyrinth._

Shit. "Hey, um, if this is about me beating you I'm sorry but I really had to."

_Mistress, you were destined to beat us. It is your way of taking your birthright._

"And what birthright is that again?"

_You are the One._

"The one what?"

_No, Mistress, you are THE One. You are the one the prophecy speaks of. We know this. The moment you stepped into our land we felt you. We had to test you though, to make sure._

"Riiiight. And what prophecy are you talking about?" Whenever Sarah looked back at herself she wondered how she ever made it into high school and shook her head with a laugh.

_Perhaps it is best to start at the beginning. We have existed since before time began but we do not remember. All we remember is the prophecy speaking of the true ruler, the One, who would bring us out of devastation and into their salvation. The One would be a mortal…but not a mortal._

"Is that even possible? And how do you know it's me?" Sarah had asked rubbing her eyes with her knuckles. Damn light mimicked her there too. "And what of the Goblin King? Aren't you, like, his Labyrinth?

_Most certainly not! Those of the blood of Goblin royalty have a more…wild kind of magic. That is why we entrust them with our care until the Mortal-That-Was-Not-A-Mortal was born and takes their birthright. King Jareth is the most powerful Goblin King to have ever existed and thus he has been the best tender we have had. That is also how we know you are the true ruler._

"Because…I beat the most egotistical man alive…and dead?"

The light of the Labyrinth moved its shadows around to create a smile, which Sarah found she mimicked this time involuntarily, and made a sound as if laughing. _No, silly girl. Well, actually…yes._ Had the Labyrinth eyebrows it would had furrowed them. _That is not the reason. The reason is that the other part of the prophecy states that the One would steal the heart of the mightiest Goblin King…and he her._

Sarah gasped. She shook an accusing finger at the mirror and sighed as the light copied. "Look here, you little mimicking pain in my back. Your prophecy is wrong. There is absolutely NO way I love the King of the Goblins. And he doesn't love me back, even if I did."

_He is tied to us because of his ancestors and us to him. Once you take your power we do not know what will happen to that bond. But with it now we know. Accept the power and your birthright, Mistress._

"Even if all this stuff is right how do you know _I _am the one the prophecy speaks of."

_We told you, we tested you and you won. We feel it resting within you. Have you not felt like you are different than the other mortals? Have you not always been drawn to the fantasies and in pretending to be different than a regular teenaged girl? Haven't you felt something was missing?_

"Yes." Sarah closed her eyes. "What if I don't agree? What if I leave you to your devastation, or whatever? Can't someone else help? Can't Jareth?"

_We will die. Only you have the power to help us. Become one with us. Together we will be whole._

"Well, that sucks. But how am I supposed to help?"

_You are our salvation and will not let us down. Now come, come and join._

Sarah lifted her hand as did the light in imitation (or was she imitating? To this day Sarah still didn't know) to the mirror and slowly went to touch the glass with her fingers. Her fingers swept through the mirror like quicksilver as her and the Labyrinth's light touched. Pain seared through Sarah's body and her chest felt like it was going to explode. And Sarah screamed. And screamed. And screamed. Sarah screamed even when it seemed she shouldn't have. And then her world had blacked out.

Staring up at the house Sarah remembered when she woke up on her floor and had thought it all a dream. But she felt whole and complete. And she found she had power she didn't have earlier. That, and around her stomach was now a type of tattoo of labyrinthian design that closely circled her bellybutton. As she learned to use her power the tattoo grew and she soon found herself with the tattoo appearing in other places as well such as her right arm and the back of her neck spreading to her back. Also a patch of the tattoo became a star-like design over her heart. And she found that when she thought of Jareth that star would burn slightly.

"Ouch," she hissed massaging her chest with her finger tips as she walked on to the door.

At age twenty-five Sarah found herself back on the steps of her family's house thinking of old memories…and a burning sensation over her heart. She grabbed the hidden key and unlocked the door stepping in. The house was empty, as she had suspected it to be, and still the same. She visited often, even if her family didn't know it. She would watch them with magic that she was learning how to control a little better every day it seemed.

At school when she didn't think about she would accidentally do some kind of magic like causing the little maze the lab rats ran around in to change. She was glad she was able to help the little white mice reach their destination though. She also found she had a control over nature and the weather, albeit a very small one. She remembered one time she accidentally made clouds form the name 'JARETH' when she was lost in thought. Man, did her chest hurt after that.

She learned through those ten years that the Labyrinth had been right; she did love Jareth. She had traveled to the Underground for a few hours sometimes and she would often find herself staring up at the Castle as she wandered through the Labyrinth. She made sure to keep hidden from the creature's eyes and from the eyes of a certain king but she was positive he knew she traveled there. The bond was still there somewhat between the Labyrinth and Jareth because Sarah had allowed it since she wasn't there all the time yet. She didn't think she would cut it after she was either.

Sarah walked up the stairs to her old room and smiled when she found that it was still the same. But what caught her eye the most was the little figure of the 'goblin king' on her vanity. She wanted nothing more than to call Jareth right then and there and lavish him. But she didn't. She told herself not to let her emotions for him come in-between her and her job. Sure, the Labyrinth was still going to be under the care of the Goblin King and he would have his magic over it, but Sarah was the one that held all the power of it.

She looked at the little figure with the crystal in his hand and narrowed her eyes. "Not this time bucko," she said flatly as she tossed herself on her bed dropping her luggage on the floor by the door. "I will not let you play with my mind anymore. I am a big girl now." With a sigh she rolled over to her stomach and stared at the little goblin monarch. "I am the One. I am the Mortal-That-Was-Not-A-Mortal." And indeed, she was. She was born mortal but now with the power she was not. It had served her well when her roommates got sick but then again she did have to clean up after them…without the use of magic. "Pah, I'm still learning," she muttered her face smothered in her pillow. "I'm not all that good, but I'm learning." She could just feel the statue watching her. Lifting her head she glared at it. "Don't give me that look. I'm not some foolish child anymore...I'm a foolish woman." And with that said she stuck her tongue at it.

Rolling back into a sitting position she hugged her pillow to her chest. She looked out her window and saw that a sprinkle had begun falling. "I will go down with this ship…won't put my hands up and surrender. No white flag above my door. I'm in love. Always will be," she half-sung softly. Turning to her stereo she rummaged through her collection of CDs for her Dido CD Life For Rent. Staring at the cover she sighed softly as she opened it up and popped it in. Pushing play she sat at her vanity staring at the little statue. She then hummed softly to the music until the lyrics came in which she sang softly straight to the statue.

"_I know you think that I shouldn't still love you,_

_Or tell you that._

_But if I didn't say it, well I'd still have felt it_

_where's the sense in that?_

_I promise I'm not trying to make your life harder_

_Or return to where we were_

_But I will go down with this ship_

_And I won't put my hands up and surrender_

_There will be no white flag above my door_

_I'm in love and always will be"_

Sarah closed her eyes standing up and turning away from the statue. She would never tell him how she felt in real life. And even though 'to where they were' was not all that great a place Sarah's fondest memories were dancing in the arms of her beautiful King.

"_I know I left too much mess and_

_destruction to come back again_

_And I caused nothing but trouble_

_I understand if you can't talk to me again_

_And if you live by the rules of "it's over"_

_then I'm sure that that makes sense_

_But I will go down with this ship_

_And I won't put my hands up and surrender_

_There will be no white flag above my door_

_I'm in love and always will be"_

As Sarah whispered the words she thought of the end confrontation. Yes, quite a mess she left. She wondered how Jareth would respond to her once she had to actually talk to him. It's been ten years and he never flew down from his castle to yell at her during her visits Under so she figured he wasn't as childish as she had thought. The words of the Labyrinth about him loving her were forgotten misplaced in her memory as she continued on with the song.

"_And when we meet_

_Which I'm sure we will_

_All that was there_

_Will still be there_

_I'll let it pass_

_And hold my tongue_

_And you will think _

_That I've moved on…"_

They were bound to run into each other. But she wouldn't let her love get in the way and she wouldn't let her past with him get in the way either. It was time they both grew up. And sometimes, growing up means that you loose your dreams.

"_I will go down with this ship_

_And I won't put my hands up and surrender_

_There will be no white flag above my door_

_I'm in love and always will be_

_I will go down with this ship_

_And I won't put my hands up and surrender_

_There will be no white flag above my door_

_I'm in love and always will be_

_I will go down with this ship_

_And I won't put my hands up and surrender_

_There will be no white flag above my door_

_I'm in love and always will be"_

Sighing Sarah looked back at the vanity and the little figure on top. "I'm in love, and I always will be. But I won't surrender Goblin King." She tipped the figure over like one would do with a photograph you no longer wish to look at and let out a shuddering breath. Dido might have been able to have a stronger voice as she said it but her man wasn't a magical Faery from another world. "I will go down with this ship." And with a snap of her fingers she was dressed in a simple silk white dress that hugged her curves and pilled out slightly to the floor with a semi-train trailing behind her. It was sleeveless and backless with the stomach and lower back areas cut out the bodice attached to the skirts only by the side. Her hair was pooled atop her head strands trailing down her bareback. With a flick of her wrist she quirked a brow with an after thought about her _white _dress. "This is so not a White Flag." And with that she looked at her mortal world for one last time before jumping through her mirror returning home.


End file.
